MORE NEWS, 9-14: HOUSE SPENDS $1 BILLION FOR WIND; GOOGLE MIRRORS FOR SOLAR POWER; GEOTHERMAL SHAKES THINGS UP; TIDAL ENERGY MOVES IN MAINE

HOUSE SPENDS $1 BILLION FOR WIND
House passes $1 billion wind energy bill
Jennifer Dlouty, September 10, 2009 (SF Chronicle)

"The House passed legislation [by a unanimous voice vote]…that would initiate a $1 billion program to make wind turbines more efficient and reliable.

"The measure, sponsored by Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., aims to ensure that huge wind-generating turbines - some with blades spanning 100 yards - can be more cost effective in harnessing power from the wind."

With inadequate funding, wind has grown from this...(click to enlarge)

"Wind power makes up about 2 percent of the nation's electricity portfolio. But the Energy Department last year predicted that with the development of more efficient and cheaper turbines, wind could provide 20 percent of U.S. electricity supplies by 2030…One of the biggest barriers is the high cost of transporting ever-growing rotary blades and heavy tower components from assembly plants to wind farms in gusty but often remote regions.

"Under Tonko's bill, the proposed wind research, development and demonstration program would get up to $200 million annually over five years to spur the creation of low-cost transportable towers and larger, lighter and more affordable blade materials…[T]he initiative could leverage nanoscience research by businesses and research institutions that are working at the molecular level to create lighter and more durable materials."

...to this. How much will it grow with adequate funding? (click to enlarge)

"The Energy Department program also would be tasked with improving gearbox reliability…developing cheaper automation and assembly techniques for large components…[and] support research on the computational modeling and simulation of wind-energy systems - a direct response to the challenge of generating power from erratic, unpredictable wind.

"Scientists testifying before Congress earlier this year said that improved forecasting and modeling techniques could lead to big gains in generation by guiding decisions about where to place turbines…"


GOOGLE MIRRORS FOR SOLAR POWER
Google plans new mirror for cheaper solar power
Poornima Gupta (w/Laura Isensee and Carol Bishopric), September 11, 2009 (Reuters)

"Google Inc is disappointed with the lack of breakthrough investment ideas in the green technology sector but the company is working to develop its own new mirror technology that could reduce the cost of building solar thermal plants by a quarter or more…

"Google, known for its Internet search engine, in late 2007 said it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy…[Its] engineers have been focused on solar thermal technology, in which the sun's energy is used to heat up a substance that produces steam to turn a turbine. Mirrors focus the sun's rays on the heated substance."

Mirrored heliostats now at work in a solar power plant in Spain. (click to enlarge)

"…Google is looking to cut the cost of making heliostats, the fields of mirrors that have to track the sun, by at least a factor of two [or more and move the cost down from a capital cost of $2.50-to-$4 per watt, which makes the cost of a 250 megawatt installation $600-million-to-$1 billion, or 12-to-18 cents per kilowatt hour]...Google hopes to have a viable technology to show internally in a couple of months…[after] accelerated testing to show the impact of decades of wear on the new mirrors in desert conditions…

"Another technology that Google is working on is gas turbines that would run on solar power rather than natural gas, an idea that has the potential of further cutting the cost of electricity…"

A field of heoliostats at an eSolar installation in California that uses technology funded by Google. (click to enlarge)

"Google is invested in two solar thermal companies, eSolar and BrightSource, but is not working with these companies in developing the cheaper mirrors or turbines…[Google also wants to see significant] government-backed research…particularly in the very initial stages to encourage breakthrough ideas in the sector.

"The company has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm…[though it has found] a lack of companies that have ideas that would be considered breakthroughs in the green technology sector. After announcing its plans to create renewable energy at a price lower than power from coal, it has invested less than $50 million in other companies…[because] there was little to buy…[Google wants the federal government] to provide [$20-to-$30 billion for 10 years] to develop ideas at the laboratory stage…"


GEOTHERMAL SHAKES THINGS UP
German Geothermal Project Leads to Second Thoughts After the Earth Rumbles
Nicholas Kulish and james Glanz, September 10, 2009 (NY Times)

"[German] government officials…are reviewing the safety of a geothermal energy project that scientists say set off an earthquake in mid-August, shaking buildings and frightening many residents of [the small city of Landau].

"The [$30 million ] geothermal plant, built [in 2007] by Geox, a German energy company, [produces electricity for 6,000 homes by drawing heat from beneath the bedrock]…by drilling [nearly 2 miles] into the earth. Advocates of the method say that it could greatly reduce the world’s dependence on fossil fuels by providing a vast supply of renewable energy."

An earthshaking New Energy concept (continued below). (click to enlarge)

"But in recent months, two similar projects have stirred concerns about their safety and their propensity to cause earthquakes. In the United States, the Energy Department is scrutinizing a project in Northern California run by AltaRock Energy to determine if it is safe…[It] was shut down by the company last month because of crippling technical problems…Another project, in Basel, Switzerland, was shut down after it generated earthquakes in 2006 and 2007 and is awaiting the decision of a panel of experts…The Landau project will be allowed to continue operating while the review panel…[sorts] through the conflicting data presented by the company and government scientists.

"…[Geothermal advocates] worry that projects like the one in Germany…could damage the reputation of geothermal energy, even in highly environmentally conscious areas of the world like California or Western Europe…Like other earthquakes that have been attributed to geothermal plants, the Landau temblor was sudden and brief and was accompanied by a sound that in some cases has been likened to a sonic boom. There were no injuries and there was no known structural damage to buildings in the city. But the 2.7 magnitude quake has stoked fears and set off debate in the state Parliament, which subsidized the construction of the plant, about the method’s safety…The police logged as many as 200 calls after the [August 15] quake…"

An earthshaking New Energy concept (continued). (click to enlarge)

"Citing an academic paper, officials of AltaRock, the company running the California project, claimed that the Landau plant caused no earthquakes…In fact, in May, the state geological survey for Rhineland-Palatinate, the state where Landau is located, concluded that four minor earthquakes, too small to be felt by residents, had been generated by the project…Seismologists at the geological survey said that the larger Aug. 15 quake was also caused by the project. The epicenter was roughly 500 yards from a drill site at the plant and at about the same depth — 1.5 miles — as a steam bed that the plant was extracting heat from…

"…Geox officials conceded that the plant had set off tiny earthquakes and said that they were not certain what set off the Aug. 15 temblor. But consultants for the company dispute the data cited by government scientists to back up their conclusion that the project caused the earthquake: their own data, they said, proves that the quake originated more than two miles from the site of the plant and six miles below the earth’s surface…essentially [ruling] out a connection with the plant…Not everyone in town was troubled by the quake…[but some] residents said they were skeptical about the new technology…"


TIDAL ENERGY MOVES IN MAINE
Coast Guard prepares to test its first tidal power generator; The project will provide power to rescue boats and a pier in Eastport starting in January.
David Sharp, September 11, 2009 (AP via Maine Today)

"The [U.S.] Coast Guard signed off…on its first tidal power project with plans for a small underwater turbine to augment electricity generated at its station in …[Maine] home to some of largest tidal variations in North America.

"The $100,000 project in Eastport will be used to evaluate tidal power technology that the Coast Guard hopes to use to provide electricity to isolated stations in Alaska…Ocean Renewable Power Co., which was tapped for the project, began testing its first underwater turbine off eastern Maine in December 2007. The Coast Guard will be given a larger prototype to be installed by January in the waters off Eastport."

Schematic of the basic Ocean Renewable Power tidal energy device. (click to enlarge)

"The turbine can produce up to 60 kilowatts, enough electricity for about 20 homes. It will likely be used to light the Coast Guard pier and to heat rescue boats…Part of the challenge will be creating a battery system to store some of the electricity as the tide changes twice a day…The system won't be used to power critical communications equipment until Coast Guard officials are certain that any potential bugs have been worked out…

"While the scope is modest, the project will mark the first time the Coast Guard has harnessed tidal power…In Maine, the Coast Guard has wind turbines that provide 365 kilowatts of electricity…and it has 360 lighted buoys and 60 lighthouses that are illuminated by solar energy."

Artist's representations of Ocean Renewable Power deployment schemes. (click to enlarge)

"Development of tidal power is years behind wind power but developers see great potential because underwater turbines eliminate complaints about unsightly towers…[and] water's greater density means fewer turbines would be required…Most important is the predictability of the tides.

"Ocean Renewable…is one of a half-dozen companies that have tested underwater turbines…[It] is the only one conducting underwater tests in Maine…Ocean Renewable hopes to install turbines with 5 megawatts of capacity that will be connected to the power grid over the next two years…"